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Zelda pointedly stared down at her phone, a frown firmly on her face as she spooned a bite of oatmeal into her mouth, washing it down with a deep gulp of nearly over-steeped black tea. Her feelings were not hurt, not even in the slightest. She was absolutely not upset by the fact that her best friend of nearly sixteen years had been all but avoiding her like the plague. Nope.
…OK, so perhaps her feelings were hurt just a tiny bit.
It was only because Link had never done something like this before in all the years she had known him. Yes, he could be a day or two late responding to her now that they were in college. But it was never longer than that and it always came with a chapter length long explanation text.
Now, her every call went to voicemail after a single ring. Her texts were responded to with monosyllabic responses or individual emoticons, if she was lucky to get a response at all. Just the day before she'd watched Link turn and walk the opposite direction of her in the Shiekah Science Hall.
With an exasperated sigh, Zelda pulled her long brown hair over her shoulder and began to braid it, still staring at the sent message on her phone.
Are you going to class today?
She sent the text as she crawled into bed around 1 am earlier that morning, only moments after calling it quits on a late night study session. Not so much as a thumbs up or down, a silly face of some sort, nothing.
"What is going on with him?" She muttered to herself, tying off her braid and tossing it back over her shoulder. She spooned the final bit of oatmeal from the bowl to her mouth and drank her remaining tea, savoring the warmth both permeated through her body.
Leaving her phone at the kitchen counter, Zelda brought her dishes to the sink and began to wash them, letting her worried mind drift back to her friend.
It felt like a heartbeat and a lifetime ago when she met him while visiting Ordon. All of seven years old, never been out of Central Hyrule City before, and the first thing she did was get separated from her parents. She managed to cross the same little foot bridge over a creek three times trying to find them before admitting she was lost. Frustrated, tired, and hot, she was moments from tears when Link found her and gently led her by the hand to City Hall. He sat with her while they waited for her parents, who the nice lady at the front desk called for Zelda once she provided her father's business cellular number.
The first words he said to her were as he held her hand, kicking his feet in tandem with hers over the wooden bench they sat on.
"My name's Link, by the way. What's yours?"
"Zelda. It's Zelda."
"That's a nice name. Say, do you ever wonder why some goats have horns that make a circle and others don't?"
"…wait, goat horns can make a circle?"
They had been friends ever since.
Ordon was only twenty minutes outside the city limits, a distance Zelda happily crossed often to see her friend as they grew up. She had fond memories of Ordon. Whether it be catching tadpoles along the banks of the main river that ran through the town during the summer or harvesting the biggest pumpkin she could carry on her own come fall, each memory had one consistency to them.
Link.
It wasn't just the good things they were there for each other, either.
Zelda was there when Link watched his parents be lowered into the ground only a few months after his tenth birthday. She was allowed to stay over with him at his godfather's home…his new home. She was there, holding her friend, as he cried himself to sleep that first night.
Link was there for here when her own parents passed away only a few years ago when she was nineteen. He was the only reason her failing grades that semester did not count against her, filing the emergency withdrawal paperwork on her behalf when she couldn't even pull herself from bed.
What in the world could be so bad that he would all but stop talking to her?
Her phone chimed loudly against where it lay on the counter, startling her ever so slightly. Placing her now clean mug in the drying rack next to her bowl, Zelda turned her attention to where a notification sat on the lock screen. It was from Link. Opening the message, she found herself, yet again, frustrated by the response awaiting her.
IDK. Probably.
…yeah, she was done being passive about this.
"OK, face to face it is then."
Efficient as always when it came to her morning routine, the twenty-one year old college senior soon found herself donning a coat and scarf to her early winter layers. Ensuring she had everything she might need before leaving for the day— phone, keys, wallet, purse— Zelda was out the door of her apartment, locking it behind her with a click. She was quickly thankful for the layers the wool tights, boots, skirt sweater and coat of her outfit made as a bitter wind tried to blow through her. She adjusted her scarf to hug more firmly around her face, making sure her braid was well and tucked into it too before setting off down the sidewalk.
This nonsense was stopping today. One way or another, Zelda was going to talk with Link and get to the bottom of his odd behavior.
Fifteen minutes later and Zelda found herself nearing the buildings she knew housed most of Link's classes on Fridays.
Skyloft University was a unique campus, in that it had one of the very few accredited Veterinary colleges in the country, making it a incredibly competitive program to be a part of. Link was already in the process of taking some of the final core courses he needed to graduate with his degree from said college, something Zelda swelled with pride about every time she thought of it.
Zelda herself was doing her best to follow in her parents footsteps by perusing a law degree with a minor in computer engineering.
She adjusts the scarf to cover her lips against the wind before checking her phone, the low lit screen reading 07:49. Good, it wasn't often that he was on campus before eight, so she could intercept him as he came to his first class. Not breaking her stride, she continued walking up the large front stone staircase of the Malon Veterinary college, quickly tucking herself into a corner near the doors to wait.
She didn't need to wait very long before a familiar face stuck out to her in the crowd of people ascending the stairs. Carefully cutting through the throng of people with a deftness that only came with years of practice, Zelda slide up next to Link, looped her arm with his, and said with what she hoped was a nonchalant tone,
"Long time no see, pal of mine."
There were a number of reactions she expected. Maybe a awkward laugh, a snorting chortling like when he doesn't want to laugh, maybe even a frown. What Zelda did not expect was for Link pull his arm from her like she was a hot tin roof, nor for his eyes to be so full of fear.
"I— Zelda, I'm sorry, I-I'm really busy. I got— I got—"
He never finished his thought, just turned and started down the stairs.
"Link!" Zelda called, giving immediate chase after him, her eyes glued to the back of his head even through the swarm of people.
"What is going on? Why won't you talk to me?"
He didn't answer her, just kept moving forward. He tried to lose her, he really did. But she kept up as he weaved through campus tour, a gaggle of freshmen, even a out of season running club meet—up.
"Link, please, just talk to me!" Zelda called to him, her voice ragged from breathing heavily.
Their meandering had led them to a small seating area, not much more than two benches, grass and a few bushes. But it at least was quiet; it at least had them in the same place together. She can see his shoulder's moving with his breath under his heavy coat, his finger clenching and unclenching around the straps of his backpack.
"I told you, I've just been busy." Link eventually says, his breathing slightly rough too. He isn't facing her, not really, so Zelda has no way of telling what expression he's wearing now.
"Look, if I did something or you don't want to be friends anymore, just tell me! I'm not a mind reader Link, I don't know if I did something wrong if you don't say it."
It's at this that he turns to her, let's her see that the fear from earlier is still there. Now though? Now its mixed with anguish, like he can't believe what he's hearing.
"Of course I still want to be your friend! It's not— You haven't done anything wrong— It-It—"
Zelda watches as he swallows hard, as his lips press into a thin, grim line. OK…ok, something was obviously not alright. Something wasn't right and it was bad enough that Link was scared to tell her.
"…do you want to do loops around the art buildings while we talk?"
Link's responding nod was all Zelda needed before she looped their arms together, pulling them away from the cluster of students making their way to the library's front door.
SU's art block of buildings was unique in that, as of just the past summer, they were the only remaining buildings on campus to yet be fully renovated. Instead of the varying shades of muted modern materials surrounding them, the original brick buildings stood against the clouding sky like trees about to drop their leaves. The sidewalk path they walked together was familiar to both of them, Zelda knew. It was a favorite of theirs, not only because the number of trees, but because it tended to be quiet. Perfect for talking things out, if need be.
"So, just to be clear, you're not mad at me?" Zelda eventually said, breaking the silence that had enveloped them for a while now.
"…no Zelda, I'm not mad at you at all." He answers softly.
"Then why have you been avoiding me? This is the most we've talked in weeks."
"…"
"…still not a mind reader, you have to say what you're thinking Link."
He nods, kicking a rock off the sidewalk and into the grass.
"I know, I know. It's just…what I have to tell you is going to sound insane. I know it's going to sound insane."
"Insane, not insane, whatever. You're my best friend, you'll be stuck with me a while still."
A deep silence stretches out between them, only the sounds of their shoes crunching against the concrete breaking it.
Link sighs deeply, once, before he says,
"So…do you remember how Illia had that party over the Harvest Moon weekend?"
"Yeah, I do. That was, what, two weeks ago if I'm thinking right?"
"Just about. A few of the guys got drunk, some stoned, normal kind of stuff. I only went because I didn't want Shad to accidentally blackout again, so I didn't even have a beer. I noticed one of the guys that seemed especially gone left the house to wander the woods. I went after him because, you know, drunk person plus dark woods usually equals a bad time."
That made Zelda smile and tighten where her arm was still looped with Link's for a second. He was too kind for his own good, sometimes.
"Sounds like a normal Friday night for you so far."
"Yeah, yeah it was until got bit by something out there."
At those words, she watched as he shook his right arm, the one not looped with hers, above his head. He shook it a moment, quickly getting the sleeve of his jacket to fall down enough for her to see what appeared to be the a scar. A rather large scar, roughly in the shape of a beastly mouth.
"Oh! Oh Goddess Link, you did make sure to get that looked at right?"
He lowered his arm and shook it again, the jacket sleeve falling back into place, the scar hidden once more.
"I did. That's…that's not what's got me so worried though."
Zelda could practically feel the waves of anxiety rolling off of Link at this point.
"…what is then?"
"It. It's that since that night, every time I sleep now, I think a part of me turns into a monster."
Zelda halted in her walking, pulling Link to a gentle stop as well.
"…wait, what now?"
He sighed, a nervous, humorless little laugh breaking from him as he said,
"I told you it sounds insane."
Standing still as they were, Zelda could easily feel how Link's arm trembled against her own. She began walking again, hoping the gentle distraction might calm him some.
"I'm not saying it's insane. It's just…there's bound to be some sort of reasonable explanation, right? Do you think you're dealing with too much stress with midterms? You've mentioned some pretty wild dreams when they've come around in the past."
"I don't know. Maybe? All I know is that it feels awfully real for a dream, Zelda."
She can hear how frustrated, how tired and scared he is, in that simple staement. She can see it in the heavy way he holds his shoulders and clenches his hands. Even if what Link is saying doesn't seem at all plausible to her, Zelda can see how badly he is being affected by it. Can see that the pain he is in is incredibly real.
"How about this?" She starts, "I think I can miss a day of classes myself. Why don't you come over to my place and we have a sleepover in the living room, like we used to do when we were kids? We can order some take out, watch movies, the works. When you go to sleep tonight, I'll stay awake so you can rest easy. That way, if you have a monster nightmare, I'll be there in the morning to be able to tell you what I saw."
Zelda watches as her friend worries at his bottom lip, considering her offer. Eventually, he says,
"Yeah, sure, why not. Let's have a sleepover."
After so little time spent with her friend in the past few weeks, Zelda found herself reveling in the easy ebb and flow of Link's company.
Having him over for a sleepover made it feel like they ten years old again in many ways. Between the blankets and cushions piled high and spilling off the couch, the pair had crafted themselves a rather comfortable sleeping space. Now, as was the custom, regardless of where they settled in for the movie, if they fell asleep they could simple remain as such with little worry of discomfort.
Zelda made sure the pizza ordered for lunch had Link's ideal toppings, a combination of chicken, onion, cheese and white sauce. When given the chance to choose the first movie of the afternoon, she was quick to notice that he picked one of her favorites. As the afternoon slowly bleed away into night, Link took the initiative to order from their favorite curry place, as always making sure to ask them for extra Goron spice in his dish and half the spice for her's.
It's not too long after they've finished their curries that Zelda begins to see the first signs of Link growing tired.
First, there was the yawning against his palm. Then, the rubbing the corners of his eyes from time to time. There's a moment, not long after he's settled himself into the cushions and blankets on the floor near the couch, arms crossed and his newest choice of movie playing on the screen, where his eyes drift close.
It's several minutes that Zelda watches from where she sat in the couch as Link's breathing evened, chest rising and falling in a calm rhythm. For a moment, she completely forgot that there was any other reason for the sleepover. For a shining, blessed moment, she watched Link as he slept peacefully, the glow of the TV illuminating his handsome features.
The spell broke as a light coils forth from her best friend's chest, twisting and weaving together, solidifying after a moment. Zelda blinks, once, as she stared at a twice the normal sized gray wolf that now stood over Link's body.
Oh. Oh. OH.
Straightening up from her half—slouch in her corner of the couch, she let the blanket pool around her lap as she stared the wolf down. Numbly, she reaches a hand out to the TV remote to press the mute button. Silence rang out, the flicker of the screen casting off shadows against the walls. There was an instinctual part of her that screamed for her get away from the giant predator in front of her. The rest of Zelda was fixated on the eyes, the gentle, deep—blue hue she had known since she was just a little thing.
"Link?"
The giant wolf, of all things, answered with a small huff and a nod.
Her hand covered her mouth, shock coursing through her like cold electricity. Lowering her hand into her lap, she softly said,
"OK, alright, I'll be the first to admit when I'm wrong, this isn't just a dream."
The wolf— Link, lowered his head, his ears tilting backwards, and tucked his tail slightly. Zelda wasn't exactly an expert with dogs, but she had seen enough of the livestock and farm dogs in Ordon to know her friend needed her.
"Link, will you come onto the couch?"
She watched as he nervously licked his muzzle before carefully maneuvering his large body onto the other end of the couch, trying to keep some distance between them.
"Can you come closer, put your head here for me please?" She patted the cradle her lap made as she shifted into a cross legged position under the blankets.
A beat and then he slowly shuffled forward to her, gingerly placing his head where she asked him to. Carefully, Zelda began to pet his cheeks, his face, his ears, watching is real time as the anxiousness drained from her friends canine form. His fur felt so interesting, the top layer wiry and coarse with a downy soft layer beneath when she let her fingers sink in.
"Well, you're not a monster, that's for certain. If anything, you look like a wolf. Your eyes are still very much yours."
Link shifted his head, catching her eyes, letting out a soft sigh in response.
"I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you first told me. Thank you for trusting me with all of this."
He thumped his tail and turned his head to give her right palm one, distinct, lick. It made her smile.
"Life is so incredibly weird, Link. But you've got me and I've got you. We'll be ok, we'll figure this out."
Link's only response was to thump his tail against the couch once again.